Parramatta’s woeful season hit a new low last week as they were comprehensively beaten at home to Newcastle. The Eels needed a late try to avoid being kept scoreless but that didn’t do anything to cover-up what a poor display it was as they crashed to a 4-30 loss.

Jarryd Hayne and Corey Norman return to the side but the Eels will be without Mitchell Moses and Will Smith who suffered knee and hamstring injuries respectively last week. Tepai Moeroa has copped a three-week ban for a shoulder charge with Brad Takairangi reverting to the second row. Tim Mannah comes onto the bench in place of Suai Matagi with Reed Mahoney also named to make his NRL debut.

The Eels have had issues on both sides of the ball this season but they looked very flat in attack last week, especially after losing Bevan French and Mitchell Moses to first half injuries. Parramatta are the lowest scorers in the NRL with 174 points, an average of just 13.4 points per game.

North Queensland produced one of their better displays this season as they defeated Manly last week. They were the better side for the majority of the game with two tries in the final 20 minutes enough to seal a 12-26 win.

Michael Morgan, Gavin Cooper and Coen Hess have all been named to back-up after Origin but Morgan will need to pass a late fitness test. Matt Scott also returns following his suspension.

Despite missing their usual starting props and starting second row, the Cowboys were still able to roll up the pitch. They made over 300m more than the Sea Eagles whilst also making 44.3m per set on average whilst restricting the Sea Eagles to 38.8m.

THE PREDICTION

On last week’s showing, Parramatta seem destined for the wooden spoon with the Eels now four points behind the Bulldogs. It was an extremely poor display that lacked intent in attack whilst they made too many errors in defence. They now host the Cowboys who will come into the game full of confidence after they beat Manly last week. The Cowboys put together a good performance despite missing a host of names in the pack as well as Michael Morgan in the backs. The three Queensland men return to boost the ranks this week as well as Matt Scott to provide even more punch up front. The Eels also welcome back a few key players but last week’s defeat showed some very worrying signs that the Cowboys will be able to exploit for back-to-back wins.

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